Parents of Y11 pupils, are you going to buy uniform for 8 March?

[SomewhereUpMyArse]

Our school has sent out a newsletter which amongst other things tells us to ensure pupils have uniform that fits for 8 March.

Now I did get some new trousers, shoes and shirts for ds2 back in September, he barely wore them due to isolating a couple of times (school instructed) and ofc hasn't since December. He's grown almost two inches since September and so the trousers now don't really fit and the shirts look a bit stupid. But do I really have to get a whole load of new kit for what will be at best eight weeks' wear after which he'll never put them on again? He is six foot 3 and a half so I have to buy men's clothing for him anyway, it isn't cheap and I'm literally buying it so he can go to school for eight weeks having missed about half a year altogether due to covid. It just seems stupid. What are others doing? YABU= suck it up buttercup, them's the rules. YANBU = send them in in joggers and bite me.

Are you planning to send him in in poorly fitting clothes, or in jeans and a hoody?

I wouldn't buy new but if you are any good with a sewing machine I would probably open up the hem at the bottom of each leg then fold over about a cm and hand stitch it back.
If he tucks his shirt into trousers then could he get away with it?

Ah, missed the last bit about joggers. No, don't send him in joggers.

If he can get the things you bought in Sept on, I’d send him in those.

I think he needs clothes that fit but I’d prob buy one of each (2 shirts) and just do a wash every other night. My kid would hate to look silly in I’ll fitting clothes and he’d hate to stand out in own clothes when meant to be in uniform.

In your position I wouldn't buy any expensive/badged stuff but would send him in anything that was still possible to wear from the September clothes even if it looked small and get the cheapest possible supermarket version for everything else.

Of course he has to wear uniform for goodness sake. You'd have had to buy more uniform at this point of the year whether they'd had so much time off or not. It's not like you get all Y11s in joggers halfway through their last year normally is it? I honestly don't see the difference. It's annoying not to have got the wear out of the other uniform but it's not like it's an additional expense. You may be able to do swaps with other parents as lots of people will be in the same position.

Not joggers, but non-branded low cost clothing assuming you cannot adjust the uniform you have.

Assuming there is an announcement on 22nd February about the return to school, how about getting the question raised in one of the daily briefings or in the House of Commons? Clothing shops will remain closed I am sure well beyond 8th March, and not everyone can shop online easily.

I'd also challenge the school's request now. Not arguing for joggers or jeans, but at least some regard for non-uniform clothing. I'd hope you'd be reasonable in dealing with the school, but there are some parents who no doubtless would be abusive to teachers and support staff over such a matter, and I am sure any Head has to consider staff welfare.

In your position I wouldn't buy new. Does the school have a second hand uniform shop? Or do you know anyone with older kids who could pass uniform on. I wouldn't send him in joggers though.

I bought my own Y11 DS trousers, shirts and shoes in September but managed to get a used blazer off a friend. It would have been £90 otherwise. His trousers will be a little bit short if/when they go back to school but his shirts & shoes are ok.

Depends on the uniform? Maybe a couple of pairs of cheap Matalan black trousers, some white shirt and a school branded tie? I suppose if they need a blazer that's very tricky. You might be able to ask on any local Facebook groups if they have uniform of the right size for that school?

Can he really not get the old uniform on? I wouldn't be buying new for a few weeks either.

Ebay? You could then ebay it again yourself once term finishes in the summer.

Very cheeky of the school to tell parents how to spend their money but it was ever thus when it comes to uniform. I am in favour of a uniform but it should be a basic colour scheme that you can buy from anywhere, not expensive items like blazers and special skirts that cost ridiculous amounts of money.

If they still fit on the body see if you can drop the hem on the trousers. Is he going on to sixth form next year?? Might not hurt to get two proper mens shirts if that is the case if they wear them in 6th form - at 6 ft 3 only likely to fill out not up over the summer.

I must get DD to try hers on - its like deja vu again wish they all just wore casual skirts/trousers and polo shirts. I like a uniform but I hate that it basically has to be a suit

I mean how long are the 11s and 13s going to be in - normally they release them after easter don't they - wonder if they will do that this year or not

I think a bit of appreciation for parents who many have had to take a paycut or lost jobs not able to go out spending even a tenner on new uniform wouldn't go amiss.

Oh god, I hadn't even thought of this. What a waste of money, I hate uniform with a vengeance.

There's no uniform shop, no. I don't even know how that would work in covid times but anyway no, there isn't.

Even matalan trousers are fifteen quid a pop. Don't forget I'm buying men's clothing. Agree that the blazer can go to blazes, there's no way I'm replacing that. Sixth form is non uniform so no he won't get any further wear out of dress shirts and trousers beyond these few weeks. He doesn't have any other trousers apart from joggers and jeans: he's a teenage boy, that's what they wear.

It's not his fault he's grown bless him but this just seems a monumental waste of money.

The shirts are ok width wise but the sleeves are way too short. Same with the trousers.

I'd send in ankle freezers after Easter certainly but not non-uniform. I think as early as 8 March I'd buy the bare minimum in the right size as they will have 3 weeks left of term and it's not too warm in March.

I'd be tempted to buy a pair of suit trousers and 2 long sleeved white shirts. These could be used in interviews etc so not a waste. I would not buy anything with school branding on. You could also ask the school if they have a spare blazer. You could exchange it for the smaller one you have. Schools generally have clean new/nearly new spare uniform knocking around.

Suit trousers, black shoes and white shirt will be useful for the wardrobe for interviews, weddings, and waiter jobs. Beyond that YANBU.

You'd have had to buy them anyway, if the September clothes don't fit.

You're looking at it from thr point of view of only getting 8 weeks worth of wearing out of it, which I do understand but the school aren't asking you to buy anything you wouldn't have anyway.

It’s absolutely tempting to agree with you, but in reality you can’t have Y11 pupils walking round a school dressed in whatever they want and expect the rest of the school to adhere to the policy. School is school. You wear what the policy says.

@RB68 quite. I'm lucky enough to have kept working but that has involved half a week in the workplace using public transport and leaving kids at home throughout plus half a week at home juggling them and work, which brings its own problems even at their teenage ages, my tax credits are about to be cut along with everyone else's, heating bill through the roof and they've already announced that heating and council tax are going to go up. So I know that from April I'll have less coming in and more going out and I really don't want to spend close to £100 on clothes so my son can go to school for eight weeks given that he's spent bugger all time there these last twelve months.

Would Asda or Tesco sell anything in a suitable size? Even from the adult department it may not be too expensive.

I'm lucky that Year 11 DD has stopped growing so she can use her old stuff. I forgot that boys carry on growing for longer. I can look forward to that when DS is in year 11.

@AStudyinPink really I think they should scrap it for everyone this year. But it's even more of an unnecessary expense for the pupils who just have a matter of weeks left.

Are Year 11 still going to finish in May or do you reckon they'll make them attend for longer this year?

I really want my y11 to take the last stretch of school really seriously. So I know uniform for a few weeks will be a waste of money in one sense but in another its investing in his future, to send him the message that This Bit Counts and he needs to work hard, not treat it like its pretty much done anyway.

And I will do what pp said and get the bare minimum and wash it often.